End frame for railway cars



Nov. 7, 1933. c. HARTER END FRAME FOR RAILWAY CARS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 9, 193,0

Imenzor: (7131468 Hzrfer- Ali/01 11 (5y c. HARTER 1,933,978

END FRAME FOR RAILWAY CARS Nov. 7, 1933.

Filed July 9, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 fzwenzor: Char/es Hzrzer NDV. 7, 1933. c HARTER 1,933,978

END FRAME FOR RAILWAY CARS Filed July 9, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Nov. 7, 1933 UNITED sT TEs PATENT OFFICE 7 ,END FRAME ti a riilnwnr cans- Application July 9, 1930. Serial No. 466,713

2 Claims. (01.105-410) The invention relates to railway cars known as automobile cars having one of the end Walls, composed of doors to facilitate the loading or unloading of automotivecars, trucks and the like. Such an arrangement materially weakens thecar framing to resist the service stresses. It is difficult to design'an end frame'of such a car and the door themselves, as well as the attachments therefor, so as to resist the weaving stresses of the car in service and also the shifting cargo and at the same time obtain adoor'whi'ch is easy to operate, waterproof and burglar-proof andwhich when open will give an opening equal in width to the inside Width of the car. Such, automobile cars are used-in general service so must be capable of carrying various types of lading as well as those mentioned above. I An; object of the invention is to form the component parts of the frame surrounding the end door opening of an integral casting, thereby eliminatinglooseness or motion between the component parts which not only weakens the structure to resist the service stresses, but also permits leaks between the door and the adjacent frame. These leaks may permit the lading to escape and also permit rain, sparks and the like to enter the car.

Another object is to eliminate the cost and delay in fabricating the numerous component parts of the present end frame which is composed of numerous fabricated and assembled parts.

The vibration of the car in motion, due to rough and uneven tracks and steel wheels rolling on steel rails, set up constant vibrations and motions in the car which cause bolted and even riveted joints in the built-up sections to work loose, therefore, the railroads look with favor upon any device which reduces the number of parts and joints. This condition is increased by the introduction of longer freight trains and higher speeds in present day railroading.

A further object is to cast integral with the cast metal frame all the appurtenances and fixtures, such as, for instance, the striking casting, push pole pocket'on the end sill, brackets for the roof frame members on the end plate and hinge lugs on the corner post.

Another object of the invention is to form the end frame of cast metal, which has a very high resistance to corrosion, as compared to rolled steel or rolled iron.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows an end elevation of a railway car equipped with my improved frame, with one of the end doors omitted.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3'-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of Fig. 1.

. Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Fig.1.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged section through oneof the corner posts on line 66 of Fig. 1'. l

. Figs. 7 and 8 show the'door opening and closing mechanism. a x

Fig. 9 is a section on line 9-9 of Figsl.

In the drawings the usual parts of the car are shown, suchas side plate 1; roof 2; running boards 3 side sill' l; side diagonal braces 5; draftsill 6; coupler? and train line pipe 8.

To illustrate my invention I haveshown a cor rugated end door 10 provided with an-eccentric closing and opening mechanism .-11,;but1any door 70 or any type of closing or opening mechanism or looking mechanismmay be usedv with my in vention.

The end frame. consists of an integral casting A comprising an end sill 13,'end'plate 14 and spaced apartcorner posts 15 with the end plate connection to each corner post reenforced by a gusset 17 lying in a vertical plane and preferably formed on a radius to maintain the maximum door opening. The end sill is preferably connected to each corner post by a gusset 18 lying in a horizontal plane, which gusset also provides means of attachment for the diagonal floor brace 19. I

The end sill 13 comprises a vertical wall or web 35 65, an upper flange 66 and a lower flange 67 forming a channel section. The upper flange is widened out to form the gusset 18 for attachment to the side sill 4 and is also secured to the draft sill 6. The lower flange 67 is integrally formed with the widened part 51 of the post flange 49 so as to mutually reenforce the post and end sill. The web 65 is widened to form the coupler carrier 21. The shelf 68 is formed on the web for attachment to the draft sill 6.

The end sill 13 also comprises a portion 20 for the coupler horn to strike against, an integral coupler support 21, a' tread 24 for the end doors, a groove or channel 25 for the reception of the flooring 26, which is usually of wood in this type of car, integral push pole pockets 28 and pockets 30 for the reception of the door opener and closer.

The end plate 2 also comprises integral pockets 32 for the reception of the door openerandcloser and an integral hood 35 above the door opening to shed the water, which hood also forms a reenforcing rib for the end plate. This hood corresponds to the slope or slopes of the end plate, which slope is increased (36) toward the side of the car so as to reenforce the gusset 1'7. The end plate preferably is made of a box section (with openings 61 for moulding) consisting of vertical walls 62 and horizontal walls 6364. One of the walls 62 and portions 63 and 64 form a channel.

Each corner post 15 preferably consists 'of members 45, 46 and 4'7 forming a channel 58 for the reception of the door 10 which channel is provided with a flange 49 which has a widened portion 50 at its upper end for attachment to the side plate 1 of the car and a widened portion 51 at its lower end for attachment to the side sill 4 of the car. The side diagonal braces 5 are also preferably attached to this flange. Each corner post is also preferably provided with another flange 53 forming a channel 54 for reception of the siding or side wall 55 of the car which, in the drawings, consists of a single thickness of woodensiding. The hinge lugs 5'7 are also cast integral with the post. The rib 59 spans the channel of the post and reenforces it. These ribs are preferably positioned adjacent the hinge lugs 5'7 and ribs 66.

A member having a channel section is very strong as a column; that is, under compression, and is also very strong as a beam to resist forces in any direction at right angles to the length of the member, therefore, in my construction I prefer to'form' the end sill, end plate and each comer post, respectively, of a channelsection and to unite these elements at their adjacent ends in such a way as to preserve a continuity of the channel section thereby providing a very strongend frame for its weight.

The door opening and closing (and locking) mechanism shown consists of a rotatable rod '70 mounted upon the door by brackets 71, '72 and '73 and revolved by the handle '74, which is .retained in locked position by the lock '76. An eccentric element '77 is provided at each end of this rod '70 which engages the pockets 30 and 32, respectively, on the end frame.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious thatvarious modifications thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. An end frame for a railway car consisting of an integral casting comprising an end sill having a striking part for a coupler horn, a coupler support, flanges for attachment of draft sills, end door tread, groove for car flooring, lower pockets for door latches, an end plate, purlinpockets, hood for door opening, and spaced apart corner posts having their upper and lower ends integrally formed with the plate and sill, respectively, said posts each comprising a channel part and a flange, said channel part "having hinge .lugs and said flange having widened portions arranged for attachment to the side sill and side plate, respectively, of the car.

2. An end frame for a railway car consisting of an integral casting comprising an end sill having a striking part for a coupler horrnflanges forattachment of draft sills, lower pockets for door latches, an end plate having upper pockets for: door latches, purlin pockets, spaced apart 195 corner posts havingtheir upper and lower ends CHARLES HARTER. 

